Missing sixth skier in Alps tragedy could have fallen into a crevice and still be ALIVE: Rescuers hope for 'miracle' after backpack is found near five victims who 'panicked and scattered' then froze to death during storm

Rescuers desperately searching for a sixth missing skier in the Swiss Alps have said 'miracles happen' after finding the person's backpack and skis next to the bodies of five other skiers that froze to death following a brutal storm this weekend. 

Air Zermatt chief Anjan Truffer, the lead rescuer deployed to find the group, said his team previously saved people who had been missing for days, giving workers a glimmer of hope the missing skier may still be alive. 

'We found missing people several days later... miracles always happen,' he said, after local police spokesman Daniel Imboden told Blick that hope remains the last person may have survived the storm.

Swiss media have speculated the individual may have fallen into a nearby crevice, given that their backpack and skis were found but rescuers have been unable to visually locate them. 

'The area is full of crevices - they may have fallen near the other members of the group. But this is just speculation,' Truffer said.

Earlier the rescue chief described how his team discovered five bodies scattered on the mountain.

'First we found two people lying on the snow, severely hypothermic. Thanks to sounding poles and avalanche locators, we later found two more people lying under the snow cover. We had to shovel these out. When we found the people, they were very lightly dressed... they ended up disorientated at high altitude,' he told Swiss outlet NZZ.

He added that the ski tourers had tried to build a cave and protect themselves from the gales - in temperatures of -30 degrees C with windchill - to no avail. 

'That's actually a good idea. But the group didn't have the necessary equipment with them. They had shovels, but they were too light to do anything with this massive blanket of snow,' Truffer concluded. 

Authorities have not yet confirmed the identities of all the deceased, but two victims were named as Jean-Vincent Moix and his brother David by friends and colleagues on social media. 

Another brother, a cousin named Marc Moix and an uncle were also involved in the tragedy along with a sixth person identified as 28-year-old law graduate Emilie Deschenaux, a friend of David's.

It is not yet clear which member of the group remains missing.  

A screenshot from a handout video made available by the Valais cantonal police shows the Tete Blanche snow field where five bodies were found, in the Swiss alps mountains, near Sion, Switzerland, 11 March 2024

The skiers, five of them members of the same family, went missing around Tete Blanche mountain on Saturday 09 March

As the group passed close to the Tete Blanche (pictured), a mountain peak between Zermatt and Arolla, the region was engulfed in a brutal storm that left the skiers stranded at an altitude of around 11,400ft (3,500 metres)

Jean-Vincent Moix (pictured) and his brother David are believed to have frozen to death after being caught in a catastrophic storm close to the Tete Blanche mountain on Saturday afternoon

David Moix (R) also lived in Vex, a small village in the Swiss canton of Valais, and was a lawyer

Marc Moix (L), a captain with the local police force in Valais, was one of the six skiers who went missing in the tragedy close to the Tete Blanche mountain on the weekend. Law graduate Emilie Deschenaux (R), a friend of David's, was also on the tour

A handout photo made available by Valais Cantonal Police shows Mountain rescuers and helicopters prepare to fly to the Tete Blanche mountain in the Swiss alps mountains, near Sion, Switzerland, 10 March 2024

The group of six skiers, who ranged in age from 21 to 58, had left Zermatt Saturday morning with the goal of reaching the town of Arolla, near the Matterhorn mountain, later that day.

But as the group passed close to the Tete Blanche, a mountain peak between Zermatt and Arolla, the region was engulfed in a brutal storm that left the skiers stranded at an altitude of around 11,400ft (3,500 metres).

A member of the group sent a distress call to emergency services around 5pm on Saturday afternoon, authorities said, but helicopters and rescue teams were unable to deploy, such was the ferocity of the storm.

By the time a rescue team finally reached the mountain on Sunday evening, five of the six alpine enthusiasts had perished close to the Dent Blanche alpine cabin. 

Mountain guide Klaus Aufdenblatten told Blick that the ski tourers were grossly underprepared for the ill-advised trip.

'The alpinists completely underestimated the weather conditions. The wind in particular can develop enormous power,' he warned.

Colleagues of Jean-Vincent paid tribute to him yesterday, including the mayor of Vex - a small village in the Swiss canton of Valais where the deceased had only recently been elected as a councillor.

The former private banker, who was also educated at the University of Westminster, was a keen mountaineer and had decided to switch careers.

Mayor Sebastien Menoud said: 'It is such a huge tragedy to lose a colleague on the local council.

'Our thoughts are with him, his family and those around him and we express our deepest condolences to them.

'One knows that it is an immeasurable pain that his family is now confronted with.'

David also lived in Vex, and was a lawyer.

A friend of the brothers, Lucas Nanchen, posted on Facebook: 'Why is it always the best ones leave first?

'David (like his brothers) was the epitome of selflessness, always listening. David was very generous. Lowkey he never came forward and yet he could have.

'The mountains of his region, which he knew by heart and cherished so much, took him away.

A close friend of police officer Marc Moix Blick: 'We don't yet know whether he is the missing person or whether he is one of the people who have already been found.

'He was like a brother to me. I've known him for a very long time. He is a generous person with an extraordinary attitude to life.'

The friend added: 'He loved life, his friends and his family. He lived his life 200 percent. It devastated me when I found out what had happened.'

And the aunt of Emilie Deschenaux wrote on social media: 'It is with immense sadness that I come to you to tell you that the mountain has wrapped my little E. in its white shroud when a drama occurred in Tete Blanche at the weekend.

'Rest in peace. You were a diamond that brightened my life. You will continue to shine in our hearts forever.'

Last night, a group of around 300 people in Vex gathered for a memorial procession, laying candles before listening to a performance by a local brass band, of which Jean-Vincent was a member.  

A helicopter is pictured during a rescue operation after six touring skiers went missing, in Evolene, Switzerland, in this handout picture released on March 11, 2024

People attend a ceremony following the discovery of 5 ski tourers who had died near Tete Blanche in the Swiss alps mountains, in Vex, Switzerland, Monday, March 11, 2024

People light candles during a memorial ceremony for the deceased skiers

The skiers, five of them members of the same family, went missing around Tete Blanche mountain on Saturday on the Zermatt-Arolla path, near the Matterhorn mountain that straddles the border between Switzerland and Italy

People light candles during a ceremony after the bodies of five ski tourers were found near Tete Blanche

People attend a vigil after the bodies of five ski tourers were found near Tete Blanche in the Swiss alps mountains, in Vex, Switzerland, 11 March 2024

Christian Varone, head of Valais cantonal police, told reporters yesterday that rescue workers had pulled out all the stops to try to reach the stranded skiers on Saturday evening but faced horrendous conditions.

'We were trying the impossible,' he said, adding that the mission had pushed its efforts 'to the extreme, extreme limit', but were forced to turn around to avoid 'seriously endangering the lives of the rescue workers'.

'Sometimes you have to bow before nature.'

Truffer confirmed that emergency services received a distress signal from one of the skiers at around 5:19pm local time on Saturday.

This, he said, gave rescuers a rough location in the Col de Tete Blanche, whose peak stands at 12,160ft above sea level.

Truffer told Blick that the weather was so bad that flying in to rescue the skiers simply wasn't an option.

He said there were 'very strong winds, heavy snow, high avalanche danger, and zero visibility' which would leave rescuers 'dead in two minutes'.

He added that when the group left Zermatt, the bad weather conditions were already known and he believes that the skiers were caught in the storm rather than struck by an avalanche.

With helicopters unable to brave the storm, five rescuers had tried to reach the rough location on foot from Zermatt, but they too were forced to turn back at an altitude of 9,840ft due to the bad weather, according to local media reports.

On Sunday, a team consisting of two rescue workers, a doctor and a mountain police officer, was finally able to be dropped off by helicopter nearby, police said.

'At around 9:20 pm, it reached the Tete Blanche sector, where it discovered the bodies of five of the six people who were missing,' it said in a statement.

The search is continuing for the last member of the group.

'As long as there is hope we will keep going... while remaining realistic in view of the conditions this person has been in for the past 48 hours,' Varone said.

Fredy-Michel Roten from the Valais Rescue Organisation told local press that six private rescue helicopters and two Swiss army Super Puma choppers are participating in the rescue mission along with dozens of specialist mountaineers.

Director of the Cantonal Valais Rescue Organisation Fredy-Michel Roten looks on during a press conference in Sion, Switzerland, on March 11, 2024

Rescue authorities announced a search in difficult weather conditions Sunday for six skiers missing. The group set off Saturday on a route between the resort town of Zermatt, at the foot of the Matterhorn, and the village of Arolla, near the border with Italy

The group of skiers, who ranged in age from 21 to 58, had left Zermatt Saturday morning with the goal of reaching the town of Arolla later that day 

Valais lead prosecutor Beatrice Pilloud told reporters that an investigation had been launched to determine the circumstances surrounding the incident.

Zermatt is a popular mountain resort renowned for skiing and attracts tourists from around the world. 

Tete Blanche in particular is very popular with ski tourers who are attracted by the region's renowned landscape and the challenging terrain it offers. 

The region hosts the esteemed Patrouille des Glaciers race, which sees ski tourers traverse a route from Zermatt through Arolla and on to Verbier. 

But the area is notoriously difficult to navigate during periods of poor visibility, and has proven fatal for even highly experienced skiers and mountaineers.

Nearly five years ago, tragedy struck when 14 members from two ski touring parties became disoriented amidst a fierce storm on treacherous slopes. 

The ensuing rescue operation endured for almost 21 gruelling hours before reaching the stranded groups. 

Seven people died, while the rest were evacuated with varying degrees of injury.